Spray painting old desk?

spraying and paint in general is all about the surface prep. It looks pretty shiny anyway so I doubt a cellulose paint would stick to that. If you’ve got your heard set on painting it you’ll probably have to sand and prime but I suspect MDF is underneath - this causes a few concerns because…

  1. MDF is horrible poisonous stuff when sanded so use a particulate mask (not a dust mask)
  2. spray paint won’t stick to MDF as is just bounces off and hangs in the air

So after sanding your best bet is to prime with a roller. A water based primer / undercoat will do but very thin coats as MDF expands when it’s to wet and will warp. Sand again between coats. After far too much work you’ll end up with a surface which may be ok for spraying in black. If you’re still bothered at this point (be sure to wear the breather / small particulate mask again) a few layers of black might look ok but will be prone to chipping with use so may requite to be lacquered. Again, this is horrible stuff so use the mask, I cannot stress this enough.

Personally I’d stick with the white because painting that thing properly is entering a world of pain.

Or look at sticky vinyl stuff to lay over it.

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